Preakness Stakes 2009: Post Positions, Entries, Contenders, Payout Odds: The $1.1 million Preakness Stakes 2009 is about to get started and Point-Spreads.com has decided to break down every horse in the field to help our readers make the best horse racing wagers possible for the Preakness Stakes 2009.

Did jockey Calvin Borel make the right decision when he dumped Mine That Bird to ride Preakness Stakes 2009 Contender Rachel Alexandra? Can new jockey Mike Smith step in and secure the second jewel of the Triple Crown of racing on Mine That Bird in the Preakness Stakes 2009? What are the best long shot Preakness Stakes Pay Out Odds with a shot at winning? Find out the answers below.

1st Post Position – Big Drama: Trained by David Fawkes with John Velazquez as the jockey, running from the 1st post Big Drama Preakness picks are being placed heavily on this colt. The pros and cons on Big Drama look a little bleak on the pros side since we found only one pro which is that he’s finished first in last six starts. The cons for Big Drama include; the majority of his best work has come against Florida breds and sprinting. His pedigree suggests he'll have distance limitations and will be shedding his blinkers for this having worn them in all seven prior starts; may want to take off the pace which makes his rail draw a negative. Making just his second start of the year, Big Drama was disqualified from win in Swale last out for bearing out through stretch; not a good sign for a horse making his first start off a layoff. He also is getting a new rider because Eibar Coa opted to ride Musket Man. SBG Global has the 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Big Drama listed at 10 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $1000).

2nd Post Position – Mine That Bird: Mine That Bird Preakness predictions will be questionable for the Derby winner. Running from the 2nd post, his trainer is Bennie "Chip" Woolley Jr. and his new jockey is Mike Smith. Leading up to the 2009 Preakness Stakes, Mine That Bird’s pros are that of course he won the Kentucky Derby by daylight last out, coming home final ½ mile in under 48 second. He should get a favorable pace set up in here. Mine That Bird won over wet track last out and rain is possible for Saturday. His new rider Mike Smith also won the 1993 Preakness aboard Prairie Bayou. The cons for Mine That Bird are that he ran career best speed figure in third start off layoff last out; major bounce candidate. Both his starts over dry tracks weren't that good; did he freak in the slop? Besides the Derby, he hasn't faced or beaten much and Calvin Borel took off to ride Rachel Alexandra. Bodog.com has the 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Mine That Bird listed at 6 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $600).

3rd Post Position – Musket Man: Third place Derby finisher is starting from the 3rd post. Preakness Stakes Entries Musket Man is trained by Derek Ryan and will be ridden by jockey Eibar Coa. Before you make your Musket Man Preakness predictions, here is a quick glance at his pros and cons. Starting with the pros, Musket Man has won five of seven career starts and was third in other pair, including the Derby. He doesn't need to take his track with him as he's raced over five different courses and owns wins over four of them. Musket Man raced well over wet track in Derby and Coa stays here over Big Drama. The cons are that he didn't really kick in through the stretch in Derby; these longer distances are probably pushing his limits a bit. How is he going to handle running back in just two weeks? He still hasn't run a triple digit speed figure and the price is going to be shorter than it should be. BetUS.com has the 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Musket Man listed at 8 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $800).

4th Post Position – Luv Gov: Starting from the 4th post, Preakness Stakes contenders Luv Gov Preakness is trained by D. Wayne Lukas and his jockey is Jamie Theriot. He did not run in the Derby and as far as the pros and cons for Luv Gov, unfortunately there is not one single thing to like about this horse. The cons for Luv Gov are that it took him ten starts to break his maiden, which came over a sloppy track. He is eligible for entry level allowance contest and his highest speed figure is an 87. Sportsbook.com has the Preakness Stakes 2009 Payout Odds on Luv Gov listed at 50 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $5000).

5th Post Position – Friesan Fire: Since being the Derby favorite and falling well short of winning (18th place finish), Friesan Fire is barely among the 2009 Preakness Stakes contenders to win at Pimlico later today. Friesan Fire will be coming out of the 5th post with Gabriel Saez as his jockey and being trained by Larry Jones. The pros include that his trip in the Derby was terrible; can't blame those who are willing to toss it out. He won three starts prior to the Derby, all graded stakes, with blinkers. His stalking running style reminds me of 2003 Preakness winner Funny Cide. Sire A.P. Indy won the 1992 Belmont Stakes; pedigree suggests his handle added distance. Friesan Fire handled the wet track well in the Louisiana Derby romp two back. The cons for Friesan Fire are that he is coming back in just two weeks after not running for seven weeks between his last two starts. His best race was over sloppy track; did he move up because of track? Friesan Fire grabbed a quarter in Derby and wasn't confirmed for this until Tuesday. Like his :57 4/5 move before the Derby, that five furlongs in :58 2/5 is a little too quick for my liking. BetUS.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Friesan Fire listed at 6 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $600).

6th Position – Terrain: As one of the 2009 Preakness Stakes Entries with long shot odds, Terrain will be a gutsy bet. Starting at the 6th post, his trainer is Albert Stall Jr. and his jockey is Jeremy Rose. There are some pros for Terrain as he is making his third start off a layoff, like Mine That Bird was in the Derby. He ran a career high speed figure two starts back and is rounding into best number. Terrain won 2 of 3 starts over dry track with lone defeat coming with blinkers. He finished third in the Louisiana Derby and fourth in Blue Grass despite bad trips in two starts this year. Jeremy Rose knows Pimlico well and won the 2005 Preakness with a remarkable ride aboard Afleet Alex. The cons for Terrain are that his highest speed figure is a 91. Lone dirt wins came in maiden claimer and minor stakes at Mountaineer in sprints. Leparoux chose to ride General Quarters over him and he might just be a cut below the top three-year-olds. SBG Global has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Terrain listed at 30 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $3000).

7th Post Position – Papa Clem: Coming in 4th place in the Derby and having a 7th starting post, Papa Clem can be one of the better 2009 Preakness Stakes contenders and entries. His trainer is Gary Stute and his jockey is Rafael Bejarano. The pros for Papa Clem are that he topped out speed figure wise two starts back before his fourth place finish in the Derby; can he achieve a new top fig? His pedigree presents a nice blend of stamina and speed and he is rated nicely in last few though he has plenty of speed to be right there early on. His lone start on dry dirt resulted in Arkansas Derby victory. Leading up to the 134th Preakness Stakes, Papa Clem’s cons begin with that he didn't like his workout earlier in the week at Pimlico and think it was unnecessary; perhaps the pressure of having a horse like this is getting to Stute. I think Bejarano is overrated and hasn't had any success in the classics. It doesn’t look good for him coming back in two weeks. BetUS.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Papa Clem listed at 12 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $1200).

8th Post Position – General Quarters: General Quarters returns to the starting gate with an 8th post after a tenth place finish in the Derby. As one of the long shot Preakness Stakes entries, a General Quarters bet is a risky wager. His trainer is Tom McCarthy and Julian Leparoux will be the jockey. The pros for General Quarters are that he was reported to come back full of mud in his eyes and nostrils after Derby which almost certainly affected his performance. He has improved vastly since removing blinkers and appears to have formed an "in/out" for pattern in his last several starts with the Preakness being an "in" race. Leparoux is one of the best riders in the country and stays here over Terrain. The cons for General Quarters are that we are skeptical about what he faced down at Tampa and in Blue Grass. He is his trainers' lone horse; McCarthy never faced this kind of pressure. His pedigree does not look good and what if the Derby was just a case of him being a cut below the top ones? Bodog.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on General Quarters listed at 20 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $2000).

9th Post Position – Pioneerof the Nile: After an impressive second place Derby finish, Pioneerof the Nile returns to the second race in the Triple Crown as one of the strongest 2009 Preakness Stakes Entries in the first. Running from the 9th post, Pioneerof the Nile is trained by Bob Baffert and Garrett Gomez is the jockey. The pros for him include that he has won all four starts, all graded stakes, including CashCall Futurity and Santa Anita Derby last out; since changing barns before gutsy second in Derby. Pioneerof the Nile trained extremely well on dirt since arriving in Kentucky for the Derby; sports solid half mile in :47 3/5 over at Churchill prior to shipping in. Baffert has won the Preakness an impressive four times with Silver Charm in 1997, Real Quiet in 1998, Point Given in 2001 and War Emblem in 2002. He has evolved from one run closer to stalking type due to lack of early pace in pair prior to Derby; it helped him immensely over speed favoring Churchill strip Derby day and probably got him second money. He also handled slop well in conventional dirt debut last out. The cons for Pioneerof the Nile are though he's training brilliantly over it, he has never raced on a fast dirt track. His highest Beyer figure is a 96 and he failed to improve off his synthetic numbers when he switched to dirt. He seemed to have been getting tired in deep stretch in the Derby and a case could have definitely been made for him to come down; is this a bit out of his scope? Two weeks may be asking a bit much. SBG Global has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Pioneerof the Nile listed at 5 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $500).

10th Post Position – Flying Private: Flying Private finished dead in the Derby and has the longest odds among all 2009 Preakness Stakes Entries. Flying Private will be running from the 10th post and his trainer is D. Wayne Lukas and Alan Garcia is his jockey. Not many people will make Flying Private their Preakness prediction but he does have some pros. Both his sire Fusaichi Pegasus and broodmare sire Unbridled won Triple Crown events. Lukas has won the Preakness five times with Codex in 1980, Tank's Prospect in 1985, Tabasco Cat in 1994, Timber Country in 1995 and Charismatic in 1999. The cons for Flying Private are that he is eligible for entry level allowance contest; finished last in the Derby and his highest Beyer figure is a 94. Lone win came in maiden sprint. Sportsbook.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Flying Private listed at 50 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $5000).

11th Post Position – Take the Points: As one of the 2009 Preakness Stakes entries that did not race in the Derby, Take the Points will be running frm the 11th post. Take the Points the trained by Todd Pletcher and his jockey is Edgar Prado. Before you decide on making Take the Points your Preakness pick, let’s take a look at his pros and cons. The pros are that he gets Prado back who's a perfect 2 for 2 on him. His blinkers are being added, an angle Pletcher has had tremendous success with and Take the Points had a solid five furlong drill in 1:00 over the deep Belmont Park training track last Sunday. The cons for Take the Points include that he is eligible for second level allowance contest. His highest Beyer figure is a 99. Both his wins have come around one turn and he’s never threatened in either graded stakes try. Though he's had success with the angle, why is Pletcher making an equipment change in a Triple Crown event, Pedigree says grass and not dirt. Prado is slumping and hasn't had much success in this and Pletcher is winless in the Preakness as well. BetUS.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Take the Points listed at 30 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $3000).

12th Post Position – Tone It Down: Tone It Down is another one of the long shots among the 2009 Preakness Stakes entries. Tone It Down has the 12th post, his trainer is William Komlo and his jockey is Kent Desormeaux. When we look at the pros and cons for Tone It Down, it does not look well, since there is not a single thing to like about this horse. The cons for Tone It Down are that he is eligible for second level allowance contest. His highest speed figure is an 87, he couldn't win ungraded Tesio over Pimlico strip and his trainer is new to this stage. Bodog.com has 2009 Preakness Stakes Payout Odds on Tone It Down listed at 50 to 1 odds (Bet $100 to win $5000).

13th Post Position – Rachel Alexandra: Among all 2009 Preakness Stakes contenders, the clear favorite to win is Rachel Alexandra. She is a filly starting the race at the 13th post with new trainer is Steve Asmussen and the veteran jockey is Calvin Borel. Rachel Alexandra Preakness predictions are pouring in since she is the Preakness favorite. The pros are that she is five for five in her starts around two turns, including wins in three G2s and the G1 Kentucky Oaks last out. She won lone start over sloppy track with greatest of ease and has the speed to lead the way yet rates off the pace kindly. Rachel Alexandra is five for five with Borel, who stays here over Derby winner Mine That Bird. She also gets positive trainer change to Steve Asmussen who won this in 2007 with Curling. The cons for Rachel Alexandra are that she's a filly running against colts. It's as simple as that. Coming back in just 15 days; two previous attempts at this resulted in losses and will be terribly over bet in the win pool. SBG Global has 2009 Preakness Payout Odds on Rachel Alexandra listed at 8 to 5 odds (Bet $800 to win $500).